Bourbon Chocolate Bunnies: Make Your Easter Basket Boozy

Easter egg hunts were fine and good when you were a kid and sugar was the only rush you needed. But it’s time to set the marshmallows aside. It’s time to get drunk the Easter way.

It’s time for Happy Hour, Gizmodo’s weekend booze column. A cocktail shaker full of innovation, science and alcohol.

Origins

Yesterday, we came across this recipe for marshmallow-infused vodka. A fun idea, except a) marshmallow are disgusting, and b) vodka is not much better. Certainly not sugary-sweet vodka. But it did make us wonder: What about a booze-filled chocolate egg?

Turns out eggs aren’t practical for much more than scrambling, chocolate or otherwise. Our little chocolate bunny friend, though? They’re the perfect size, they’re cheap, and they’re already moulded, hollowed out and decorated. In other words, the hard part has been done for you. Superb.

Some notes on choosing your bunnies. You can get them anywhere right now, but make you’re you’re getting the right kind. The most important thing is that the bunny is hollow, and that its shell is intact.

The bunnies you buy will generally be milk chocolate. If so, buy milk chocolate chips so the patch work matches. If you can find a hollow, dark-chocolate bunny, even better. Dark chocolate goes with bourbon really well. If that’s the case, then get dark (semi-sweet) chocolate chips.

As far as the bourbon goes, get something decent but not too fancy. You just want a decent shootin’ bourbon, not a nice sippin’ bourbon. Wild Turkey 81-proof, for instance, works perfectly.

Tricks For Perfectly Melted Chocolate

This is the only tough part. Chocolate is actually surprisingly temperamental. It’s really easy to burn, or screw up the consistency. Just follow these simple steps, though, and it’ll be a breeze.

Important Note: No water! Make sure the bowl you’re pouring the chips into and the spatula you’re using to stir it are bone dry. Even a few tiny droplets of water can cause the chocolate to seize, which will make it chunky and unusable.

>You also want to make sure the chocolate pieces are uniform in size so they melt at the same speed. If you’re using chocolate chips (as we recommend) then that’s already taken care of. If you’re chopping from a block, try to make them roughly chocolate-chip sized. Basically: just buy chocolate chips.

Directions:

1. Pour about 30g of chocolate chips into a microwave-safe bowl. Turn the power level down to 50 per cent, and then microwave the bowl for 30 seconds.

2. Give the softened chocolate chips a quick stir with your rubber spatula. Chocolate retains its shape as it melts, so you can’t tell if it’s melted just by looking. Put it back in the microwave, at the same settings, for another 30 seconds. Repeat until the chocolate seems roughly half-melted.

3. Once the chocolate is half-melted remove the bowl from the microwave and keep stirring. The chocolate should continue melting until it’s all one uniform, smooth texture. Note: One ounce of chocolate only took 60 seconds in my microwave. Your milage may vary.

That’s it! Your chocolate should stay pliable for a good while, but we still recommend waiting to melt it until the very last possible moment.

Instructions

OK, here’s how everything comes together. Again, it’s super simple. You can easily make a dozen of these in 20 minutes.

1. Use the metal skewer (or something similar) to poke a hole in the bottom of the foot of your bunnies. It should be large enough that you can pour your bourbon in.

2. Poke a second hole next to the first one to allow air to escape as you’re pouring the booze in. Do this and the above step for all of your bunnies before proceeding to step three.

3. Melt your chocolate following the instructions above.

4. Carefully pour the bourbon into the hole in the rabbit’s foot. If possible, do not fill it all the way to the top. You’re going to bite into the ears later, and you don’t want it gushing booze all over your shirt. If you accidentally over-fill it, just pour a little out into a cup (or your mouth).

5. Use a clean paper towel to thoroughly dry the outside of the bunny, especially on the foot around the holes. Again, you’ve got to get it bone dry or you won’t be able to seal it.

6. Using your rubber spatula, cover the bottom of the rabbit’s foot with melted chocolate so that both holes are entirely sealed. If the chocolate is too runny, let it cool off a bit, or add multiple layers. Try to make it smooth so the rabbit will stand up.

7. Keep the bunny upside down as you allow the chocolate to cool and set. If you want to hurry things along you can pop it in the freezer.

8. Once the chocolate has hardened, you’re all good to go. If the bunny came with some decorative foil, you can feel free to re-wrap it. Or draw drunken eyes on it with some frosting. The world is your oyster. Just remember to not take too big of a bite, or it will gush all over you like an over-zealous aunt.

So, there you have it. The flavours of bourbon and chocolate complement each other really nicely. The best part is that you can do this extremely last-minute and it’s guaranteed to be a huge hit at any (boozy) Easter party you go to. Just make sure you keep them out of the kiddies’ reach. Enjoy your weekend, and check back next week for another Happy Hour.